Jorge Macchi's 'RETOUR' Turns Discarded City Papers into Art at Museo Sívori
The exhibition 'RETOUR' by Argentine artist Jorge Macchi is on display at the Museo Sívori in Buenos Aires from May 28 to August 9, 2026. This showcase highlights five years' worth of discarded papers collected from Villa Crespo, presented as urban archaeological artifacts. Macchi reinterprets these items—such as addresses, shopping lists, and personal notes—creating new meanings. For instance, an ingredient list transforms into a meal, while toy instructions lead to a constructed object. The exhibition also features photographs of forsaken items and a picture disc with Edgardo Rudnitzky. 'RETOUR' builds on Macchi's 2004 work 'Buenos Aires Tour,' reversing its premise to spotlight the voyeurism inherent in reading others' writings, while intentionally avoiding metadata to provoke deeper inquiries.
Key facts
- Exhibition 'RETOUR' by Jorge Macchi at Museo Sívori, Buenos Aires, May 28 – August 9, 2026.
- Macchi collected discarded papers in Villa Crespo for five years.
- Found items include addresses, shopping lists, instructions, measurements, and letter fragments.
- The installation turns the papers into a collection and a machine for producing new fictions.
- Macchi's process involves chance and method: finding, selecting, classifying, and transforming.
- A found ingredient list became a meal prepared by a chef during the exhibition.
- A picture disc with Edgardo Rudnitzky reproduces a map of the neighborhood, with its center hole at Macchi's studio.
- 'RETOUR' references the 2004 project 'Buenos Aires Tour' with María Negroni and Edgardo Rudnitzky.
- Photographs by Nacho Iasparra document the exhibition.
- The exhibition was supported by Ruth Benzacar Galería de Arte.
Entities
Artists
- Jorge Macchi
- María Negroni
- Edgardo Rudnitzky
- Nacho Iasparra
Institutions
- Museo Sívori
- Museo de Artes Plásticas Eduardo Sívori
- Ruth Benzacar Galería de Arte
Locations
- Buenos Aires
- Argentina
- Villa Crespo